


a lesson in heroics

by coffeelions



Series: heroes in love [1]
Category: Yu-Gi-Oh! GX
Genre: Episode 166 coda, Love Confessions, M/M, i couldn't let my boy be done dirty like that, the last time we see edo is when he's slapped in the face by ojama yellow
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-09
Updated: 2020-12-09
Packaged: 2021-03-10 04:27:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,944
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27978084
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/coffeelions/pseuds/coffeelions
Summary: "Is that what I am?" Judai asks, amused. "Your last loose end?"
Relationships: Edo Phoenix | Aster Phoenix/Yuuki Juudai | Jaden Yuki
Series: heroes in love [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2070645
Comments: 10
Kudos: 33





	a lesson in heroics

_"But, for now, respond to the people who've supported you."_

Losing to Manjoume is a blow to his pride, but there's a fire catching in his chest, a rush of adrenaline that only comes from dueling hard and dueling well. It's been a long time since he's dueled someone and thought they were a _challenge_.

The future looks bright.

Emeralda is waiting for him at the entrance, but he waves her off. 

There's something he has to do first.

She gives him a curious look, but doesn't push. All she does is tell him to take his time and, with a pat on the shoulder, grounding and encouraging, he is left alone.

He's not as lonely as he used to be, he thinks. There are times where he longs for his father, that will never go away, but his heart feels fuller by the day. Saiou, Mizuchi, Emeralda, all the little ones at the orphanage who look up to him with beaming smiles and generous love—it's enough, he thinks.

It's more than enough.

Distant cheers reach his ears from even outside and it spurs him on, to keep on walking, to keep moving forward. A low thrum of energy tingles beneath his skin, soothing and loving. He imagines a wave goodbye.

_Oh_. He places a hand on one of the many stone pillars holding Duel Academy up, for years gone and for years to come. Closes his eyes briefly.

This is the last time he'll be here. He can feel it in his soul.

He gives the stone a pat before continuing to walk through the quad; the warmth in his veins reminds him of a hug. Maybe Duel Academy is sentient, he thinks. He wouldn’t be surprised.

This school year has felt very long. In the end though, there's no reason to return. Manjoume, Tenjoin, Marufuji. Kenzan not too soon after. All graduating, all leaving.

Having a head start isn't so bad.

He comes to a halt. There's a feeling, like a grab of a hand, asking him to pause. He flexes his hand, wondering.

Then, he narrows his eyes at the dirt path beneath his feet. If Duel Academy is sentient, she would surely have favourites out of the hundreds of students in her care.

He supposes he's not any different.

So, he turns. Judai Yuki exits the building in a hurry and his eyes find his immediately.

Duel Academy _meddles_. He taps the ground with the tip of his shoe. The breeze that blows by sounds like laughter.

He raises a hand to gesture at Judai to join him, but he’s already halfway there. He puts his hand down and waits, feeling just a little ill-prepared.

He expected to have at least a few more minutes to clear his head, to find the right words, to just be _ready_ , before Judai came looking for him. Though, he thinks fondly, they’ve known each other long enough that he should have learned his lesson in underestimating him. 

"Not up for celebrating?" Edo asks when he gets close enough, tucking his hands in his pockets. When Judai keeps walking instead of stopping, he falls in step with him easily.

"Nah, I see that guy every day." Judai nudges his shoulder, walking too close, but he doesn't say a word. "I want to see this cool, new card of yours."

"You already have," he says with a huff. Regardless, he flips Destiny End Dragoon out of his deck and into Judai's hands. He takes it with a confidence and care that makes the card hum.

Is it embarrassing, he wonders, for your cards to like your crush?

It's only embarrassing if he believes it to be, he decides. Approval is better than disapproval, after all.

"It's a good card," Judai says, after being quiet for too long, but he doesn’t take offense. Judai gives a nod of respect to the card as he hands it back. "He's strong."

"Did you have a," he grasps for a suitable word, "conversation? With him?"

He can _feel_ his cards, knows them well, can feel their love around him every moment of every day. But, Destiny End Dragoon is new, he wants to know how he is, how he’s doing, if he’s mad at all for being stolen in the first place. 

"He's doing well," Judai says and it's reassuring in a way that makes his chest seize with emotion. "He’s getting used to the rest of your deck,” Judai continues. “He's a fusion, so it's easier than if he was a new monster, but—" he trails off.

"But?" he asks and Judai takes a turn, leading him towards the Osiris Red dorm, but not exactly. He follows anyway.

"He feels guilty for losing," Judai says, and the next words are said carefully, deliberately light, "especially since he was made by a different designer."

He can't have that. He feels a surge of protective instinct and presses his hand to his deck box, silently thanking him for being strong, that he'll work hard so they can work seamlessly together, so that he can bring out the best of his ability. It doesn't matter if the fusion wasn't made by his father's hand. Destiny End Dragoon—a card made specifically for him! It's something to cherish, not to scorn.

The card _sings_ under his hand and he relaxes. The first thing he'll do when he gets back is practice and strategize. He'll work hard to not let his newest Destiny Hero down.

Judai comes to a stop and he refocuses on his surroundings. He smiles as he realizes where they are. "Feeling sentimental, Judai?"

This is the cliffside where they had their first duel. A mishmash deck made on the fly, Judai falling over himself in elation over being a _senpai_.

It's a ridiculous memory in hindsight, but he holds it dear all the same.

Judai, who's been quietly looking away, letting him bond with his deck, looks back at him with a smile.

"Maybe a little," he laughs.

"You didn't take me out here to duel, did you?" he asks. They could. He wouldn't mind. It would be very Judai to see him get a new card and want to duel immediately.

"Nah." Judai shakes his head. Then, he smiles bashfully. "Just sentimental."

Judai makes his way over to the ledge, sitting down gracelessly, letting his legs hang over it. After a moment, he joins him. Dust from the rocks will most definitely stain his suit, but he doesn't sweat the small stuff. If the biggest worry he has is dust, he'll embrace it happily.

He breathes the fresh air.

The best thing about Duel Academy has always been the view, he thinks. There's a beauty in this tall cliffside, the reliable rock formations, the push and pull of the blue waves against the shore. The evening sun shines at them from the horizon, so close he can almost reach it.

Judai, too, he thinks, has always made Duel Academy what it is. He’s the rambunctious Osiris Red dorm, the worn and beaten dirt paths, the strong surrounding trees. He's the calming night skies, the safety of the lighthouse, the anchor that keeps him from leaving for too long.

Why would he ever return to Duel Academy, he thinks, if Judai isn't right there with him?

Judai catches him staring, but that's okay. It’s not like he isn’t staring right back.

"You're not in a rush, are you?" Judai asks. He rolls his eyes. Like he'd be hanging out with him if he was in a rush. He tells him so and Judai quirks a brow, gives an amused tilt of his head. "Why are you so snappy? You're the one who wanted to talk to me."

While not _untrue_ , he frowns and asks, "How did you know that?"

Judai just smiles at him.

Ah. Right. Duel Academy and her favourites.

He's steadily coming to the realization that the ball is firmly in Judai's court. He runs a hand through his hair and reminds himself, that yes, it _has_ always been like this. He shouldn’t have expected anything less.

"What happened to your hand?"

Before he can answer, his injured hand is being grasped by both of Judai's, calloused and bigger than his.

Warmer than his.

"It's fine," he says, because even though it's wrapped in a bandage, it really isn't as bad as it looks. Still, Judai peers at it in concern, cradling it in his lap like it's something fragile. Like _he’s_ something fragile.

"Should you be dueling with a hand injury?" Judai muses and he feels like he can call him a hypocrite, because how many times has Judai dueled while injured?

"I had something worth saving," he says instead. Like a hand injury mattered in the slightest when the kids at the orphanage were on the line.

Judai hums. "Heroic," he says. It would sound sarcastic from anyone else, but this is Judai. It's genuine and full of understanding, because really, who could understand better?

He huffs out a laugh.

Judai pokes and prods at his hand until there's nothing left to poke or prod at. Even then, he still holds Edo's hand in his lap, running aimless patterns over the bandage with his finger.

He doesn't pull away.

"I wanted to thank you," he says eventually, dragging his gaze to the water below them, "for getting Destiny End Dragoon back."

"That's no big deal," Judai says, even though it _is_. Always helping, always saving. He's Edo's hero, even if he never says it aloud.

Judai furrows his brow and the gaze that lands on him is curious. "That's not what you wanted to talk about, though."

No, it's not, he thinks. He feels exasperated all of a sudden. "Judai, let me build up to it."

"Yes, of course, Edo- _sama_."

He could push Judai off into the water, he muses. That would definitely be closure.

When he turns to Judai to say just that, he finds he can't say a word. Judai smiles at him patiently, brown eyes gentle, hair windswept in the way it always is.

And that's it, isn't it? With the setting sun radiating from afar, lighting everything warmly, kindly, beautifully, making _Judai_ all those things and more, he says, simply, "I like you."

For a long moment, Judai doesn't respond. The only movement is him looking to the horizon, a thoughtful look in his eyes. All things considered, he doesn't seem that surprised at all.

He's not worried about it. In truth, he already feels lighter just saying it, speaking it, for having Judai know. Breathing has always been easy, and now it feels easier.

It's a good way to end this chapter of his life.

"You're pretty relaxed," Judai says and when their eyes meet, he sees the same fondness as before. "For someone who just confessed, I mean."

He shrugs. Smiles. "I am pretty relaxed," he agrees. "This is a good farewell."

His father, DD, everything and everyone. This is the best closure he's ever gotten, closure on his own terms and with his own heart. He's grateful for it.

"Farewell," Judai repeats. He tilts his head. "You going somewhere?"

Yes, he thinks. Back to the Pro League, back to dueling and events and signings. Back to the orphanage. Back to Saiou and Mizuchi, too.

Pride, he thinks. The glow of the sun against the water, the water a soothing rhythm against the bank. This is pride.

"Just tying up loose ends," he answers.

"Is that what I am?" Judai asks, amused. "Your last loose end?"

Judai hasn't given him his hand back. He glances at it, briefly, pointedly, but Judai doesn't make any move to return it.

He offers a smile. "Yes," he says.

Judai presses their shoulders together, looking up towards the sky. Still thinking, still thoughtful. 

It’s a good look on him. 

"You know," Edo says, not unkindly, "I wasn't expecting any specific reaction from you, but I really thought you'd blush or _something_ at being confessed to." Judai snorts and he continues, complaining in earnest now, because he _has_ imagined how this scene would play out a few times, "This is so underwhelming. Don't tell me you have practice doing this."

A raised brow, a face much too close to his, but Judai's just like that, he doesn't mind. "Practice doing what?"

"Rejecting people," he says and he waits for Judai to agree, that this is a rejection, because the thing is—the thing _is_ —

Judai is _still_ holding his hand. Which, honestly, he's fine with in the platonic sense, they're good enough friends that if Judai wants to hold hands, he'll let him. But, he thinks, it feels too out-of-place for a confession.

When have they been normal though, he laments.

"Edo," Judai says, cutting through his thoughts. It's quiet, the way he says his name, maybe the quietest he's ever heard him. So, he turns off the sass, turns down the smile, and listens attentively and with all his being.

"I'm not the same as I was before," Judai says, tired, like a stone skipped across water and sinking, sinking, sinking.

Before, he thinks. Right, Judai sees things as before and after the incident in the other dimension, lost in the shadows and the dark.

(He keeps to himself that the most important before and after in his life was meeting Judai. It's not the time for it.)

"I don't think any of us are the same," he says, matching the quiet. He thinks about the weight on their shoulders, on everyone's shoulders. He's already picked his up, packed it away, placed it with his memories of DD.

Living people shouldn't know death as well as they do, he thinks as tiredly as Judai looks.

"I mean," Judai says. Swallows. "More than that."

The weight on Judai's shoulders must be insurmountable, crushing, endless—he can only imagine. But this, right here, is Judai asking him to look at it, to look at him, to not just imagine, to really _feel_ , and so he does.

He's not as in tune as Manjoume or Johan or Judai when it comes to this, but—

Judai smells of ozone, of ash, of the abyss. He's a strike of lightning, a bullet, a blazing star. He can sense it, can _breathe_ it, just by being so close. Can feel the way his Destiny Heroes feel restless. Feel reverent.

He feels reverent, too.

"I know," he says, gently but firmly. He moves his injured hand, notices the way Judai's own curl around it instinctively, protectively, before releasing, like a reflex he's ashamed of. He doesn't mind at all, just takes one of Judai's hands in his. Squeezes it tight, because even though there's pain, it's _real_. "I know."

Judai looks at him, eyes wide. Surprised. Conflicted. Then, maybe even relieved.

When Judai shuts his eyes, he knows what to expect, but the air still stalls in his throat as brilliant and shining eyes, _Yubel's_ eyes, meet his.

He understands.

The Light has never done them any good. Saiou and Yubel, corrupted beyond saving, now been saved by the boy of Gentle Darkness sitting beside him, hand clutching his.

This too, he feels, is closure.

"You haven't been around, so you wouldn't know, but," Judai says, gaze flickering away and back, "I am different. Really different. It's all anyone will tell me nowadays." He sighs, scrubbing at his face with the hand not holding his. Scrubs it again. "So, I can't accept your confession. I'm—not the same person you like."

"You're so dramatic," he sighs out without hesitation. Judai meets his eyes with a strength that has taken down people and monsters alike. Still, he scoffs. He's not intimidated by Judai or Yubel or _JudaiAndYubel_. 

"I get what you mean," he settles for. Can't help but add, "but it's stupid."

"Edo," Judai says, exasperated, and he laughs.

"Can't you just reject a confession normally?" he asks. His cheeks are starting to hurt from smiling so much. " _I don't return your feelings_ would have sufficed."

"I didn't say _that_ ," Judai says and he knows. Judai's shy smile is anything but a rejection.

"I was aiming for closure," he tells Judai, "not—" he trails off. _Hope_ , he doesn't say, but it's clear in the way he smiles giddily, heart beating in his chest.

"Pass me your phone," Judai says, commands really. It's less effective when Judai is blushing. It's late, he thinks affectionately, but there's the reaction he was looking for.

He does as asked, watching as Judai fumblingly puts in a number. Sees him call it, can hear a cheery tune coming from Judai's pocket.

"Loose end," Judai mutters, like it's an insult. Maybe it was.

Judai tosses his phone and he catches it. "That's my number," he says, like he has to. Then, he meets his gaze and doesn't let go.

"I can't read minds," he says, raising a brow. Judai just keeps looking at him, eyes dark but gentle, tired but happy.

Yeah, okay, maybe he can read Judai easily. What a cop-out.

"You want me to get to know you again," he states, just to be clear, because talking in circles has never gotten him anything before.

"If you want to," Judai says, like there’s anything he wouldn’t do for him. Then, he gives him a lopsided smile, _the_ lopsided smile, the one that's a Judai Yuki special, the one he fell for months and months ago. 

It's been _so long_ since he's seen it.

"You're annoying," he declares with a full heart, and Judai's laughter, buoyant and free, makes him fall all the more.

**Author's Note:**

> i'm @coffeelions on tumblr and thank you for reading :)


End file.
